Politics As Usual — 8.20.12

There has been a flurry of political activity over the past few days. Set designers who have worked for the likes of Martha Stewart and Oprah are hard at work building a blockbuster set for the Republican convention.

Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney have been on the offense on Medicare — and Joe Biden has come under fire from both media organizations and politicians.

But here's what captured everyone's attention over the last couple of days: Republican Representative Todd Akin of Missouri — who may be on track to unseat Sen. Claire McCaskill and tip the balance of power in the Senate — talking about whether women who are raped should be able to have an abortion.

Guests:

Ziad Munson, professor of sociology at Lehigh University.

Jeffrey Berry, professor of political science at Tufts University.

Peter Ubertaccio, chair of the department of political science and international studies at Stonehill College.